CONSTANT LOSING CAN LEAVE LASTING IMPRESSION ON CHILDREN

About 50 years ago, I was on a pre-Little League team. Back then, drafting players didn’t happen. The only way it worked back then was to put all the good players on several teams and put all the poor players on several teams. You can guess what happened. All the poor teams lost and all the good teams won. This went on for three years. Unfortunately, I wasn’t very good and we lost all our games. That’s not a good feeling for a 10-year-old.

I went home frustrated back then, and to this day I still have bad memories about that time. At the time, I’m sure the adults in charge didn’t have a clue. So, losing for me was not a good feeling.

I just hope parents realize losing is losing. And having your son on a losing team may not be the best thing for them. It wasn’t for me. Thanks for listening.

Keith in Chula Vista

Keith in Chula Vista,

First, thanks for the feedback.

It’s interesting how we look at winning and losing in youth sports. So many coaches and parents say that winning isn’t what’s really important, but how many of us believe that? I don’t!

Losing stinks, no matter the age or level of competition. Believe me, I have been on the losing side of too many games as a Little League coach. It is demoralizing for the kids who are getting beaten into submission every game, and it isn’t any better for the coaches who are doing everything they can to help these kids.

The other thing is that losing leads to so many other issues.

The year my Little League team started 0-16, not only was I battling the kids, who after a while just expected to lose, but I also had to deal with the parents who, of course, blamed the coaches. The truth is, the losing was a combination of bad players, less-than-stellar coaching and teams that were built through the draft and trades to dominate.

So back to the beginning: Everyone wants to win! Winning makes the game more fun!

So when you hear a coach, parent or player say winning isn’t the most important thing, ask Keith in CV how he feels about that, who 50 years later is still not over it!